Covid-19 Sentry

Contents

• From Preprints
• From Clinical Trials
• From PubMed
• From Patent Search

From Preprints

• Spatiality of COVID-19 Infections in Ahmedabad: An Early Period Analysis -
  The Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), that has gripped the world since December 2019 and declared a pandemic has infected about 4.8 million people in India and counting. This pandemic is urban-centric globally and in India in the earlier stages. In this paper we argue that the virus’s spread in India has multiple routes, the housing conditions, socio-economic characteristics as well as the epidemiology route that influences the management of the infection contrary to attributing the spread geography to only vulnerable areas. Selecting Ahmedabad, a city that register higher number of infections in the early period, this paper attempt to understand the pattern of infection spread and explain these using recorded infections from March 17, 2020 to June 10, 2020 period.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Spatiality of COVID-19 Infections in Ahmedabad: An Early Period Analysis
• E-learning readiness and perceived stress among the university students of Bangladesh during COVID-19: a countrywide cross-sectional study -
  Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has compelled all educational institutions from the conventional campus-based education system to e-learning worldwide. However, adapting to this new platform, e-learning readiness may cause perceived stress among students. This study aimed to examine the association between e-learning readiness and perceived e-learning stress and the relationship between sociodemographic and e-learning related factors. Results: A cross- sectional study was employed, where 1145 e-learning enrolled university students were surveyed. The result indicated that nearly 91% of students reported moderate (76.07%) to the higher level (14.85%) of perceived e-learning stress, whereas more than half of them (58.17%) were at the sub-optimum level of readiness. Furthermore, it was found that students with the sub-optimum level of readiness compared to optimum had a significantly higher chance of reporting a moderate and high level of perceived e-learning stress. Besides, parents’ highest education, residence, students’ preference in (e-learning or learning format), and having any eye problems were associated with perceived e-learning stress. Conclusions: A sudden introduction of e-learning during the COVID-19 catastrophe has brought about challenges, including the students’ readiness, that might exacerbate the perceived stress level in different ways. This study reported that most of the students were at sub-optimal levels of readiness and suffered from moderate to high levels of perceived e-learning stress. The findings should integrate into the education monitoring system to enhance students’ coping strategies, incite readiness, straighten and nourish existing policies.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: E-learning readiness and perceived stress among the university students of Bangladesh during COVID-19: a countrywide cross-sectional study
• Predictors of black fungus fear during the COVID-19 pandemic among the Bangladeshi health workers: a cross-sectional study -

  Background: Raised of mucormycosis or black fungus cases middle of the COVID-19 pandemic, fear associated with black fungus may turn out to be a terrifying public health issue. This study aimed to assess the association between the fear and knowledge of black fungus and other determinants among healthcare workers in Bangladesh. Methods: From 25th May 2021 to 5th June 2021, a cross-sectional study was carried out among healthcare workers. For data collection during the COVID-19 pandemic, a semi-structured online questionnaire was used followed by convenient and snowball sampling methods. A multivariable linear regression model was fitted to assess the association between the fear and knowledge of black fungus and other determinants. Results: A total of 422 healthcare workers participated in this study. The results indicated that with the increased knowledge score of black fungus, the average score of black fungus fear was significantly increased (β = 0.35, 95% CI: 0.20, 0.50, p <0.001). Alongside, the respondents having insomnia had a higher score of black fungus fear compare to not having insomnia (β = 3.91, 95% CI: 2.49, 5.33, p <0.001) significantly. The gender, profession, and death due to COVID-19 of friends and family members had a significant effect on black fungus fear score increment. Conclusion: Even in the COVID-19 pandemic, the black fungus fear among healthcare workers may hinder their quality of life. Our study findings recommend an emphasis on the mental health aspects and ensure support to the healthcare workers so that they can tackle the ongoing situation with lesser frictions. Keywords: Mucormycosis, black fungus, COVID-19, fear, knowledge, insomnia, health workers.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Predictors of black fungus fear during the COVID-19 pandemic among the Bangladeshi health workers: a cross-sectional study
• Association between preference and e-learning readiness among the Bangladeshi female nursing students in the Covid-19 pandemic: a cross-sectional study -

  The COVID-19 pandemic jeopardized the traditional academic learning calendars due to the closing of all educational institutions across the globe. To keep up with the flow of learning most of the educational institutions shifted toward e-learning. However, the questions of the students e-learning preference for various sub-domains of e-learning readiness did not identify, particularly among the female nursing students for a developing country like Bangladesh, where those domains pose serious challenges. A cross-sectional study was conducted among the female nursing students perceived e-learning readiness in sub-domains of readiness; availability of technology, use of technology, self-confidence, and acceptance. About 237 nursing students were recruited, who have enrolled in e-learning at least the last 30 days of the participation. A multivariable linear regression model was fitted to find the association between students preference and the perceived e-learning readiness with demographic and e-learning related factors. The findings of the study revealed that more than half of the students, 56.54% (n=134) did not prefer e-learning. The students did not prefer e-learning compared to prefer group has significantly less availability of technology (β = -3.01, 95% CI: -4.46, -1.56), less use of technology (β = -3.08, 95% CI: -5.11, -1.06), less self-confidence (β = -4.50, 95% CI: -7.02, -1.98), and less acceptance (β = -5.96, 95% CI: -7.76, -4.16). The age, degree, residence, parents highest education, having a single room, having any eye problems significantly associated with the variation of availability of technology, use of technology, self-confidence, and acceptance for e-learning. The outcomes of the study could be helpful while developing an effective and productive e-learning infrastructure regarding the preparedness of nursing colleges for the continuation of academia in any adverse circumstances like the COVID-19 pandemic.

• Clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination in South Africa -

  Low- and middle-income countries are implementing COVID-19 vaccination strategies in light of varying vaccine efficacies and costs, supply shortages, and resource constraints. Here, we use a microsimulation model to evaluate clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness of a COVID-19 vaccination program in South Africa. We varied vaccination coverage, pace, acceptance, effectiveness, and cost as well as epidemic dynamics. Providing vaccines to at least 40% of the population and prioritizing vaccine rollout prevented >9 million infections and >73,000 deaths and reduced costs due to fewer hospitalizations. Model results were most sensitive to assumptions about epidemic growth and prevalence of prior immunity to SARS-CoV-2, though the vaccination program still provided high value and decreased both deaths and health care costs across a wide range of assumptions. Vaccination program implementation factors, including prompt procurement, distribution, and rollout, are likely more influential than characteristics of the vaccine itself in maximizing public health benefits and economic efficiency.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Clinical outcomes and cost-effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccination in South Africa
• A novel benchmark for COVID-19 pandemic testing effectiveness enables the accurate prediction of new Intensive Care Unit admissions -

  The positivity rate of testing is currently used both as a benchmark of testing adequacy and for assessing the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, since the former is a prerequisite for the latter, its interpretation is often conflicting. We propose as a benchmark for COVID-19 testing effectiveness a new metric, termed “Severity Detection Rate” (SDR), that represents the daily needs for new Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admissions, per 100 cases detected (t-i) days ago, per 10,000 tests performed (t-i) days ago. Based on the announced COVID-19 monitoring data in Greece from May 2020 until August 2021, we show that beyond a certain threshold of daily tests, SDR reaches a plateau of very low variability that begins to reflect testing adequacy. Due to the stabilization of SDR, it was possible to predict with great accuracy the daily needs for new ICU admissions, 12 days ahead of each testing data point, over a period of 10 months, with Pearson r = 0.98 (p = 10-197), RMSE = 7,16. We strongly believe that this metric will help guide the timely decisions of both scientists and government officials to tackle pandemic spread and prevent ICU overload by setting effective testing requirements for accurate pandemic monitoring. We propose further study of this novel metric with data from more countries to confirm the validity of the current findings.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: A novel benchmark for COVID-19 pandemic testing effectiveness enables the accurate prediction of new Intensive Care Unit admissions
• Protection offered by mRNA-1273 versus BNT162b2 vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe COVID-19 in Qatar -

  BACKGROUND: Growing evidence suggests that COVID-19 vaccines differ in effectiveness against breakthrough infection or severe COVID-19, but vaccines have yet to be investigated in controlled studies that head-to-head compare immunity of one to another. This study compared protection offered by the mRNA-1273 (Moderna) vaccine with that of the BNT162b2 (Pfizer-BioNTech) vaccine in Qatar. METHODS: In a population of 1,531,736 vaccinated persons, two matched retrospective cohort studies were designed and used to investigate differences in mRNA-1273 and BNT162b2 vaccine protection, after the first and second doses, from December 21, 2020 to October 20, 2021. RESULTS: After dose 1, cumulative incidence of breakthrough infection was 0.79% (95% CI: 0.75-0.83%) for mRNA-1273-vaccinated individuals and 0.86% (95% CI: 0.82-0.90%) for BNT162b2-vaccinated individuals, 21 days post-injection. Adjusted hazard ratio (AHR) for breakthrough infection was 0.89 (95% CI: 0.83-0.95; p=0.001). AHR was constant in the first two weeks at 1, but it declined to 0.67 (95% CI: 0.57-0.77; p<0.001) in the third week after dose 1. AHR for any severe, critical, or fatal COVID-19 was 0.71 (95% CI: 0.53-0.95; p=0.020). After dose 2, cumulative incidence was 0.59% (95% CI: 0.55-0.64%) for mRNA-1273-vaccinated individuals and 0.84% (95% CI: 0.79-0.89%) for BNT162b2-vaccinated individuals, 180 days post- injection. AHR for breakthrough infection was 0.69 (95% CI: 0.63-0.75; p<0.001) and was largely constant over time after dose 2. AHR for any severe, critical, or fatal COVID-19 was 0.37 (95% CI: 0.10-1.41; p=0.147). CONCLUSIONS: mRNA-1273 vaccination is associated with lower SARS-CoV-2 breakthrough infection and COVID-19 hospitalization and death than BNT162b2 vaccination, but the number of hospitalizations and deaths was exceedingly small for both vaccines. Both vaccines demonstrated strikingly similar patterns of build-up of protection after the first dose and waning of protection after the second dose.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Protection offered by mRNA-1273 versus BNT162b2 vaccines against SARS-CoV-2 infection and severe COVID-19 in Qatar
• Monday effect on confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Japan -

  We examined the phenomenon of fewer new confirmed cases of COVID-19 on Mondays in Japan, which we refer to as the Monday effect, and reveal the details of this effect. Specifically, we estimated the difference between the number of new positive cases that decreased over the weekend and the number of new confirmed cases that decreased at the beginning of the week. In Japan, prefectures aggregate and announce the number of confirmed daily cases. This analysis allows us to examine whether there is a Monday effect in each prefecture. We show that the Monday effect is due to the decreased number of inspections on the weekend appearing at the beginning of the week due to a time lag. Our results indicate that the administrative system causes delays in some prefectures, and that some prefectures are less likely to conduct screenings on holidays. Our results also suggest that delays generally occur in prefectures with a population of over 2 million.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Monday effect on confirmed cases of COVID-19 in Japan
• Social norms (not threat) mediate willingness to sacrifice in individuals fused with the nation -
  Identity fusion with the community has been previously found to mediate altruism in post-disaster settings. However, whether this altruistic response is specifically triggered by ingroup threat, or whether it can also be triggered by global threats remains unclear. We evaluated willingness to sacrifice in the context of the covid-19 pandemic across three surveys waves. Against expectations, participants fused with the nation (vs. non-fused) did not differentially respond to a national vs. global threat condition. Conversely, social norms decisively influenced willingness to sacrifice in this sample, with fused individuals with stronger norms about social distancing reporting the highest altruistic response during the first weeks of the pandemic. Longitudinally, after an initial peak in the altruistic response, deteriorating social norms mediated decreases in willingness to sacrifice in individuals fused with the nation (versus non-fused). Implications of these results for the development of interventions aimed to address global challenges are discussed.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Social norms (not threat) mediate willingness to sacrifice in individuals fused with the nation
• The impacts of COVID-19 on eating disorders and disordered eating: A mixed studies systematic review and implications for healthcare professionals, carers, and self -
  Objective: The unique constraints to everyday life brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic have been shown to negatively impact those with pre-existing mental health issues such as eating disorders. While individuals with eating disorders or disordered eating behaviours represent a vulnerable group to COVID-19 pandemic, the impact of the pandemic is yet to be fully established. As such, we systematically examined the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on eating disorders and disordered eating behaviours. Method: We searched electronic databases MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and EMBASE for literature published until October 2021. Eligible studies were required to report on individuals with or without a diagnosed eating disorder or disordered eating behaviours who were exposed to the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: Seventy-two studies met eligibility criteria with the majority supporting an increase in eating disorder or disordered eating behaviours associated with the COVID-19 pandemic. Specifically, children and adolescents and individuals with a diagnosed eating disorder present a vulnerable group to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. Discussion: This systematic review provides a timely insight into COVID-19 eating disorder literature and will assist in understanding possible future long-term impacts of the pandemic on eating disorders behaviours. It appears that the role of stress in the development and maintenance of eating disorders was intensified as a means to cope with the uncertainty of the pandemic. Future research is needed among understudied and minority groups and to examine the long-term implications of the COVID-19 pandemic on eating disorders and disordered eating behaviours.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: The impacts of COVID-19 on eating disorders and disordered eating: A mixed studies systematic review and implications for healthcare professionals, carers, and self
• Major depression among men and women in the US during the COVID-19 pandemic -
  A multidimensional index that measures the health status of individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic has been developed. The COVID-19 Health Status Scale (CHSS), a combination of previously studied and newly created health status scales, assesses the physical, mental, and social well-being of adults during the COVID-19 pandemic. The current study aimed to examine the differences between men and women in self-reported past major depressive disorder diagnosis during the COVID-19 lockdown in the United States using the CHSS self administered questionnaire. Participants were recruited using convenience sampling performed online through the SurveyMonkey Audience. The self-administered CHSS questionnaire has been pilot tested in an adult population during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown in the US. The study sample size included 173 participants aged 18 years and older. Results revealed that almost one-third of the study participants (31.2%) reported being diagnosed with past major depressive disorder, whereas 68.8% reported no past major depressive disorder diagnosis. The results of the estimated coefficients of the logistic regression analysis test showed that men were less likely to report major depression during the COVID-19 lockdown (Exp (B) = 0.45 for men; p < 0.05) than women. Although the results showed that almost two thirds of the participants reported no major depression diagnosis during the COVID-19 lockdown, the logistic regression analysis confirmed that the chances of men reporting major depressive disorder diagnosis were lesser than that of women and this difference was statistically significant.

• Improving speed of models for improved real-world decision-making -
  The sudden onset of the COVID-19 global health crisis and as-sociated economic and social fall-out has highlighted the im-portance of speed in modeling emergency scenarios so that ro-bust, reliable evidence can be placed in policy and decision-makers’ hands as swiftly as possible. For computational social scientists who are building complex policy models but who lack ready access to high-performance computing facilities, such time-pressure can hinder effective engagement. Popular and ac-cessible agent-based modeling platforms such as NetLogo can be fast to develop, but slow to run when exploring broad param-eter spaces on individual workstations. However, while deploy-ment on high-performance computing (HPC) clusters can achieve marked performance improvements, transferring models from workstations to HPC clusters can also be a technically challenging and time-consuming task. In this paper we present a set of generic templates that can be used and adapted by NetLogo users who have access to HPC clusters but require ad-ditional support for deploying their models on such infrastruc-ture. We show that model run-time speed improvements of be-tween 200x and 400x over desktop machines are possible using 1) a benchmark ‘wolf-sheep predation’ model in addition to 2) an example drawn from our own work modeling the spread of COVID-19 in Victoria, Australia. We describe how a focus on improving model speed is non-trivial for model development and discuss its practical importance for improved policy and de-cision- making in the real world. We provide all associated doc-umentation in a linked git repository.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Improving speed of models for improved real-world decision-making
• Inhaled Corticosteroids for Outpatients with Covid-19: A Meta-Analysis -

  The role of inhaled corticosteroids for outpatient COVID-19 is evolving. We meta-analyzed reported clinical trials and estimated probability of any effect and number needed to treat of 50 or 20 for symptom resolution by day 14 [100%, 99.8%, 93.1%] and hospitalization [89.3%, 72.9%, 26.7%] respectively.

  🖺 Full Text HTML: Inhaled Corticosteroids for Outpatients with Covid-19: A Meta-Analysis
• Remote-Delivered Services on College Campuses Manuscript -
  Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically increased use of remote-delivered mental health services. This study identifies advantages and limitations of remote-delivered services on college campuses to inform mental health delivery post-pandemic. Methods: Clinicians (n = 30) were asked to evaluate COVID-19’s impact on their work, environment, and wellness in an online survey. Qualitative data was coded using a thematic analysis approach, while quantitative data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Results: Many clinicians reported benefits of remote services, including increased accessibility, greater convenience, no change in therapeutic alliance, and decreased stress for clinicians. Clinicians also experienced challenges such as social isolation, technological difficulties, and personal/family concerns. Clinicians envisioned a hybrid service combining online and in-person activities post- pandemic. Conclusions: Overall, remote-delivered mental health services on college campuses have potential in increasing treatment quality while highlighting a necessity for further research in hybrid mental health delivery.
  🖺 Full Text HTML: Remote- Delivered Services on College Campuses Manuscript
• Reducing false-positive SARS-CoV-2 diagnoses using long-range RT-qPCR -

  Quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) is a sensitive molecular method for the detection of genetic material and regarded as the gold-standard for diagnostic testing. To detect respiratory RNA virus infections, a reverse transcription (RT) step is implemented to create cDNA molecules that can serve as template in the qPCR step. However, positive RT-qPCR results can be found long after patient recovery, in part because the RT-qPCR can detect residual viral RNA genome fragments. To minimize the detection of such fragments, we here modified the RT-qPCR assay by replacing the routinely used random hexamers with an oligonucleotide that binds to the 39 end of the viral genome. We demonstrate that this method allows us to distinguish between infectious and non-infectious samples. Moreover, in clinical samples obtained over 15 days after the onset of symptoms, we observe that the modified RT-qPCR protocol yields significantly fewer positive results compared to a commercial RT-qPCR test. No significantly different results were found compared to the commercial test when SARS-CoV-2 clinical samples were tested within 5 days of the onset of symptoms, suggesting that the modification has a similar sensitivity for detecting infectious viral RNA. Overall, these findings may help differentiate between incorrectly-positive, persistently positive, and reinfection cases in COVID-19 patients.

From Clinical Trials

• BREATHE: Virtual Self-management for Long COVID-19 - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Other: BREATHE
  Sponsor:  
  University of Calgary
  Not yet recruiting

• Adding Colchicine to Tocilizumab in Patients With Severe COVID-19 Pneumonia. - Condition:   COVID-19 Pneumonia
  Intervention:   Drug: Colchicine
  Sponsor:  
  Hamad Medical Corporation
  Recruiting

• the Safety and Efficacy of Meplazumab in Patients With COVID-19 - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Drug: Meplazumab for Injection;   Drug: Sterile normal saline (0.9%)
  Sponsor:   Jiangsu Pacific Meinuoke Bio Pharmaceutical Co Ltd
  Not yet recruiting

• Health Information Technology for COVID-19 Testing in Schools (SCALE-UP Counts) - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Behavioral: Text Messaging (TM);   Behavioral: Text Messaging + Health Navigation (TM+HN)
  Sponsors:   University of Utah;   Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
  Not yet recruiting

• Hypertonic Saline Nasal Irrigation and Gargling (HSNIG) for Suspected COVID-19 in Pakistan - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Other: Hypertonic Saline Nasal Irrigation and Gargles (HSNIG)
  Sponsors:   The Allergy and Asthma Institute, Pakistan;   University of Edinburgh
  Recruiting

• Immunogenicity And Safety of COVID-19 Vaccine , Inactivated Co -Administration With EV71 Vaccine (Vero Cell) - Condition:   COVID-19
  Intervention:   Biological: Experimental Group
  Sponsor:  
  Sinovac Biotech Co., Ltd
  Not yet recruiting

• A Study to Evaluate Safety & Immunogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 DNA Vaccine Delivered Intramuscularly Followed by Electroporation for COVID-19 - Condition:   Covid19
  Interventions:   Biological: SARS-CoV-2 DNA Vaccine;   Biological: Matching placebo
  Sponsors:   The University of Hong Kong;   Immuno Cure 3 Limited
  Not yet recruiting

• Homeopathic Treatment of Post-acute COVID-19 Syndrome - Condition:   Post-acute Covid-19 Syndrome
  Interventions:   Drug: Homeopathic Medication;   Other: Placebo
  Sponsors:   Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine;   Samueli Institute for Information Biology
  Recruiting

• Intranasal INNA-051 for Prevention of COVID-19 in Adults - Condition:   COVID-19 Pandemic
  Interventions:   Drug: INNA-051;   Other: Placebo
  Sponsor:   ENA Respiratory Pty Ltd
  Not yet recruiting

• Effectiveness of Interactive Voice Response for COVID-19 Vaccination Training in the Democratic Republic of the Congo - Conditions:   COVID-19 Vaccine Knowledge;   COVID-19 Vaccine Beliefs
  Interventions:  
  Behavioral: COVID-19 Vaccine IVR Training;   Behavioral: Control Condition
  Sponsors:   Stanford University;   Viamo
  Not yet recruiting

• A Clinical Trial to Evaluate the Efficacy of RUTI® to Reduce the Severity of SARS-CoV-2 Infection (COVID-19) - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Biological: RUTI® vaccine;   Biological: Placebo
  Sponsors:   RUTI Immunotherapeutics S.L.;   Archivel Farma S.L.
  Not yet recruiting

• Study to Evaluate the Safety and Immunogenicity of SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (IN-B009) in Healthy Adults (COVID-19) - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Biological: IN-B009 (Low-dose);   Biological: IN-B009 (High- dose)
  Sponsor:   HK inno.N Corporation
  Recruiting

• Lot-to-lot Consistency of an Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine Between Different Workshops in Healthy Children Aged 3-17 Years - Condition:   COVID-19
  Interventions:   Biological: Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (Vero cell) Lot 1 of the workshop 2;   Biological: Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (Vero cell) Lot 2 of the workshop 2;   Biological: Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (Vero cell) Lot 3 of the workshop 2;   Biological: Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (Vero cell) Lot 1 of the workshop 3;   Biological: Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (Vero cell) Lot 2 of the workshop 3;   Biological: Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (Vero cell) Lot 3 of the workshop 3;   Biological: Inactivated SARS-CoV-2 Vaccine (Vero cell) Lot 1 of the workshop 1
  Sponsor:   Sinovac Biotech Co., Ltd
  Recruiting

• The Potential Use of Nebulized Hydroxychloroquine for the Treatment of COVID-19 - Condition:   2019 Novel Coronavirus
  Interventions:   Drug: HCQ01;   Other: standard of care (SOC) for COVID-19
  Sponsors:   Ministry of Health Jordan;   King Hussein Cancer Center;   ACDIMA Biocenter;   Amman Pharmaceutical Industries;   Sana Pharmaceutical Industry
  Not yet recruiting

• The Effect Of Music On Compliance Of Patients İn COVİD-19 Intensive Care Unit With CPAP Device - Conditions:   COVID-19;   COVID-19 Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome
  Intervention:   Device: Listening to music with a bluetooth headset to patients receiving CPAP support
  Sponsors:   SÜMEYYE BİLGİLİ;   Ataturk University
  Recruiting

From PubMed

• Common cardiac medications potently inhibit ACE2 binding to the SARS-CoV-2 Spike, and block virus penetration and infectivity in human lung cells - To initiate SARS-CoV-2 infection, the Receptor Binding Domain (RBD) on the viral spike protein must first bind to the host receptor ACE2 protein on pulmonary and other ACE2-expressing cells. We hypothesized that cardiac glycoside drugs might block the binding reaction between ACE2 and the Spike (S) protein, and thus block viral penetration into target cells. To test this hypothesis we developed a biochemical assay for ACE2:Spike binding, and tested cardiac glycosides as inhibitors of binding….

• Characterization of the Trans-Epithelial Transport of Green Tea (C. sinensis) Catechin Extracts with In Vitro Inhibitory Effect against the SARS-CoV-2 Papain-like Protease Activity - This work describes an untargeted analytical approach for the screening, identification, and characterization of the trans-epithelial transport of green tea (Camellia sinensis) catechin extracts with in vitro inhibitory effect against the SARS-CoV-2 papain-like protease (PLpro) activity. After specific catechin extraction, a chromatographic separation obtained six fractions were carried out. The fractions were assessed in vitro against the PLpro target. Fraction 5 showed the highest inhibitory…

• Whey-Derived Peptides at the Heart of the COVID-19 Pandemic - The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) is a key regulator of blood pressure and hypertension. Angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) and angiotensin-converting enzyme I (ACE) are two main components of the RAS that play a major role in blood pressure homeostasis. The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) uses ACE2 as a receptor to enter cells. Despite some controversies, numerous studies have reported a significant association between the use of ACE inhibitors and reduced risk…

• Advances of nanomaterials-based strategies for fighting against COVID-19 - The severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has infected over 100 million people globally due to its high infectivity. After decades of efforts on the studies of nanomaterials, researchers have applied nanomaterials- based strategies to combat the pandemic of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). First, nanomaterials facilitate the development of easy, fast, and low-cost diagnostic assays to detect SARS-CoV-2 and related biomarkers. Second, nanomaterials enable the…

• Isolation and Characterization of Mouse Monoclonal Antibodies That Neutralize SARS-CoV-2 and Its Variants of Concern Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta by Binding Conformational Epitopes of Glycosylated RBD With High Potency - Antibodies targeting Receptor Binding Domain (RBD) of SARS-CoV-2 have been suggested to account for the majority of neutralizing activity in COVID-19 convalescent sera and several neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) have been isolated, characterized and proposed as emergency therapeutics in the form of monoclonal antibodies (mAbs). However, SARS-CoV-2 variants are rapidly spreading worldwide from the sites of initial identification. The variants of concern (VOC) B.1.1.7 (Alpha), B.1.351 (Beta), P.1…

• Structural screening into the recognition of a potent inhibitor against non-structural protein 16: a molecular simulation to inhibit SARS-CoV-2 infection - COVID-19 infection is caused by endemic crown infection (SARS-CoV-2) and is associated with lung damage and severe immune response. Non-Structural Proteins are the central components of coronaviral transcription and replication machinery in SARS-CoV-2 and also stimulate mRNA cap methylation to avoid the immune response. Non-Structural Protein 16 (NSP16) is one of the primary targets for the drug discovery of coronaviruses. Discovering an effective inhibitor against the NSP16 in comparison with…

• Discovery of SARS-CoV-2 M(pro) peptide inhibitors from modelling substrate and ligand binding - The main protease (M^(pro)) of SARS-CoV-2 is central to viral maturation and is a promising drug target, but little is known about structural aspects of how it binds to its 11 natural cleavage sites. We used biophysical and crystallographic data and an array of biomolecular simulation techniques, including automated docking, molecular dynamics (MD) and interactive MD in virtual reality, QM/MM, and linear-scaling DFT, to investigate the molecular features underlying recognition of the natural…

• Network Meta-analysis on the Changes of Amyloid Precursor Protein Expression Following SARS-CoV-2 Infection - SARS-CoV-2 infection begins with the attachment of its spike (S) protein to angiotensin-converting enzyme-2 (ACE2) followed by complex host immune responses with cardiovascular and neurological implications. Our meta-analyses used QIAGEN Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) and Knowledge Base (QKB) to investigate how the expression of amyloid precursor protein (APP) was modulated by attachment of SARS-CoV-2 S protein in the brain microvascular endothelial cells (BMVECs) and during COVID-19 in…

• A novel definition and treatment of hyperinflammation in COVID-19 based on purinergic signalling - Hyperinflammation plays an important role in severe and critical COVID-19. Using inconsistent criteria, many researchers define hyperinflammation as a form of very severe inflammation with cytokine storm. Therefore, COVID-19 patients are treated with anti-inflammatory drugs. These drugs appear to be less efficacious than expected and are sometimes accompanied by serious adverse effects. SARS-CoV-2 promotes cellular ATP release. Increased levels of extracellular ATP activate the purinergic…

• A natural product compound inhibits coronaviral replication in vitro by binding to the conserved Nsp9 SARS-CoV-2 protein - The Nsp9 replicase is a conserved coronaviral protein that acts as an essential accessory component of the multi-subunit viral replication/transcription complex. Nsp9 is the predominant substrate for the essential nucleotidylation activity of Nsp12. Compounds specifically interfering with this viral activity would facilitate its study. Using a native mass spectrometry-based approach to screen a natural product library for Nsp9 binders, we identified an ent-kaurane natural product, oridonin,…

• Deficient synthesis of melatonin in COVID-19 can impair the resistance of coronavirus patients to mucormycosis - In addition to uncontrolled diabetes and the excess use of corticosteroids, it is believed that other factors may be responsible for the recent spurt of COVID-19 associated mucormycosis (CAM). In the present paper it is argued that COVID-19 increases the susceptibility of the patients to mucormycosis by augmenting the virulence factors of the mucor species, where deficient synthesis of melatonin plays a key role. Melatonin is synthesized from tryptophan via the serotonin pathway and melatonin…

• Transparent Polymeric Formulations Effective against SARS-CoV-2 Infection - The main route of the transmission of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is through airborne small aerosol particles containing viable virus as well as through droplets transmitted between people within close proximity. Transmission via contaminated surfaces has also been recognized as an important route for the spread of SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. Among a variety of antimicrobial agents currently in use, polymers represent a class of biocides that have become increasingly important as an alternative to existing…

• Molecular docking and pharmacokinetic studies of phytocompounds from Nigerian Medicinal Plants as promising inhibitory agents against SARS-CoV-2 methyltransferase (nsp16) - CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that the six phytocompounds could serve as therapeutic agents to prevent viral survival and replication in cells. However, further studies on the in vitro and in vivo inhibitory activities of these 6 hit phytocompounds against SARS-CoV-2 nsp16 are needed to confirm their efficacy and dose.

• Relaxed complex scheme and molecular dynamics simulation suggests small molecule inhibitor of human TMPRSS2 for combating COVID-19 - As the coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19) pandemic continues to pose a health and economic crisis worldwide, the quest for drugs and/or vaccines against the virus continues. The human transmembrane protease serine 2 (TMPRSS2) has attracted attention as a target for drug discovery, as inhibition of its catalytic reaction would result in the inactivation of the proteolytic cleavage of the SARS-CoV-2 S protein. As a result, the inactivation prevents viral cell entry to the host’s cell. In this work,…

• Novel nucleocapsid protein-targeting phenanthridine inhibitors of SARS-CoV-2 - The COVID-19 pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is unprecedented in human history. As a major structural protein, nucleocapsid protein (NPro) is critical to the replication of SARS-CoV-2. In this work, 17 NPro-targeting phenanthridine derivatives were rationally designed and synthesized, based on the crystal structure of NPro. Most of these compounds can interact with SARS-CoV-2 NPro tightly and inhibit the replication of SARS-CoV-2 in vitro….

From Patent Search

• Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and uses thereof I - - link

• Anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and uses thereof II - - link

• 휴대용 자화 육각수물 발생기 - 본인의 발명은, 사람의 신체에서 육각수물 생성에는 한계가 있으며, 동맥혈관, 정맥혈관 내부 혈액은 수분이 약 90% 이며, 건강한 성인이면, 육각수 물은 약 62% 이며, COVID-19 환자, 사고의 부상, 17만개의 질병, 질환으로 조직세포가 손상되면 자기 신체수복을 위해서 육각수 물을 평소보다 많이 흡수 하면서 동반 산소부족 상태가 되며, 육각수물 보충 없이 산소 호흡기를 사용하면 심각한 후유증이 발병 할 수 있다.

육각수물 부족 상태를 해결하기 위해서, 객관적인 과학적으로 네오디뮴(원자번호 = 60) 3.000 가우스의 자기장을 이용하여서 육각수 물을 62% ~ 80% 이상, 상시 유지 시켜주는 제조 방법이며, 휴대용으로 항시 착용 가능하다. 결론은 COVID-19, 질병, 질환의 근본적인 원인은, 육각수물 부족 상태가 되면 동반 산소 부족 상태가 되면서, 염증 -> 통증 -> 극심한 통증 -> 석회화, 섬유화, 암 까지 발병 한다. - link

• 휴대용 자화 육각수물 발생기 - 본인의 발명은, 사람의 신체에서 육각수 생성에는 한계가 있으며, 동맥혈관, 정맥혈관 내부 혈액은 수분이 90% 이며, 육각수물은 약 62% 이며, COVID-19, 사고 부상, 질병, 질환으로 조직세포가 손상되면 자기 신체수복을 위해서 육각수물을 평소보다 많이 흡수하면서 산소부족 상태가 되며, 육각수 보충 없이 산소호흡기를 사용하면 심각한 후유증이 발병 할 수 있다 육각수물 부족 상태를 해결하기 위해서, 객관적인 과학적으로 네오디뮴(원자번호 = 60) 3.000 가우스의 자기장을 이용하여서 육각수물을 62% ~ 80% 상시 유지 시켜주는 제조 방법이며, 휴대용으로 항시 착용 가능하다. 결론은 COVID-19, 질병, 질환의 근본적인 원인은, 육각수물 부족 상태가 되면 동반 산소 부족 상태가 되면서, 염증 -> 통증 -> 극심한 통증 -> 석회화, 섬유화, 암 까지 발병 한다. - link

• 用于检测新冠病毒的配对抗体及其应用 - 本发明涉及一种用于检测新冠病毒的配对抗体及其应用，其包括第一检测抗体和第二检测抗体；第一检测抗体具有如SEQ ID NO:1~3所示的轻链互补决定区，以及如SEQ ID NO:4~6所示的重链互补决定区，第二检测抗体具有如SEQ ID NO:7~9所示的轻链互补决定区，以及如SEQ ID NO:10~12所示的重链互补决定区。本发明筛选得到具有上述互补决定区序列的配对抗体，其识别N蛋白的不同表位，且由于两种抗体识别的是N蛋白非核酸结合区域，不会受核酸负电荷干扰，对核酸抗原表现出了兼容性，具有较好的稳定性，同时上述配对抗体具有较高的亲和力，病毒N蛋白检测灵敏度高。 - link

• 抗KL-6双特异性抗体及基因、重组载体、药物、试剂盒 - 本发明公开了抗KL‑6双特异性抗体或其变体、或其功能性片段，所述抗KL‑6双特异性抗体或其变体、或其功能性片段包括抗PTS域和抗SEA域，所述抗PTS域的重链可变区的CDR1、CDR2和CDR3分别具有SEQ ID NO.1~3所示的氨基酸序列。本发明还提供了基因、重组载体、药物、试剂盒。本发明的抗KL‑6双特异性抗体或其变体、或其功能性片段用于与KL‑6蛋白特异性结合，基因、重组载体用于抗KL‑6双特异性抗体的制备，药物用于治疗KL‑6蛋白引起的相关疾病，试剂盒用于KL‑6蛋白的定量检测。 - link

• 基于决策树模型与逻辑回归模型组合的感染筛查方法 - 本发明公开了一种基于决策树模型与逻辑回归模型组合的感染筛查方法，其检测操作方便，可提高感染筛查准确性，该方法基于生命体征监护仪实现，生命体征监护仪与远程数据服务平台通信连接，远程数据服务平台依据临床数据进行感染筛查，该方法包括：通过生命体征监护仪检测获取用户临床数据，将临床数据随机划分为训练集、测试集，将训练集均分为两份：训练集A、训练集B，基于训练集A构建决策树模型，同时，对训练集A进行特征选择，将关键特征向量作为已构建的决策树模型的输入，获取新构造特征向量，基于组合特征向量，构造逻辑回归模型，基于决策树模型和逻辑回归模型组合，对测试集进行预测分类，获取分类结果。 - link

• 病毒中和抗体与非中和抗体联合检测方法、检测卡及应用 - 一种病毒中和抗体与非中和抗体联合检测方法、检测卡及其应用，通过病毒受体结合蛋白夹心法原理检测中和抗体，其为通过提前设置病毒受体结合蛋白和能阻断中和抗体与其结合的作为配体的蛋白所形成的复合物，将靶向受体蛋白的非中和抗体提前捕获，保证后续通过夹心法检测中和抗体的特异性。解决了现有技术中中和抗体检测灵敏度低、特异性差以及不能区分中和抗体与非中和抗体的问题，提供了一种简便、快速、灵敏度高、特异性高的病毒中和抗体与非中和抗体联合检测方法、检测卡及其应用。 - link

• 扩增△500-532的SARS-CoV-2 Nsp1基因的引物对及其检测方法 - 本发明公开了一种扩增Δ500‑532的SARS‑CoV‑2 Nsp1基因的引物对及其检测方法。引物对的具体序列如SEQ ID NO.1和SEQ ID NO.2所示，其检测方法为：采用引物对对SARS‑CoV‑2 Nsp1基因进行PCR，对PCR产物进行变性退火后，加入T7EI内切酶孵育，再进行PCR扩增，并判断是否存在Δ500‑532的SARS‑CoV‑2 Nsp1基因。本发明可简便快捷的区分出SARS‑CoV‑2 Nsp1基因突变型和野生型。 - link

• 多肽及其在新型冠状病毒检测中的应用 - 本发明涉及生物医学领域，具体而言，涉及一种多肽及其在新型冠状病毒检测中的应用。所述多肽包括如下部分：S——Linker——N——avi‑tag。通过经过优化的刚性linker序列把S蛋白和N蛋白串联起来，使得这两个蛋白即具备相对独立的空间构象，又增加了许多优势表位，很大程度上提高了灵敏度和信号值；此外，融合蛋白引入Avi‑tag，使得重组蛋白可以通过固定的位点被固相化，降低包被过程所带来的空间位阻的影响。由此，该多肽能够达到很高的灵敏度和特异性，并且不易发生漏检。 - link